Take pride and stop dumping
Living off Puu Honua Road in Kealakekua Bay, I walk daily for staying fit toward the City of Refuge and back. Passing the Keei transfer station the other day, I noticed a sign on the gates — no dumping, $500-$1,000 fines for intentional dumping of trash with four to eight hours of litter clean-up and possible jail time.
The sign didn’t specify along the Puu Honua Road, but I imagine that was the intention. The roadside is littered with smelly garbage, yard waste, old tires, parts of vehicles, broken concrete, and tossed beer cans and bottles.
Tourists travel this road frequently to the City of Refuge and Two Step swimming area. The sight of garbage and a seeming careless attitude toward the island and its environment are going to hurt kayaking and rental businesses in the area. Who wants to pass through a local dumping ground while on vacation?
Please stop the dumping on Puu Honua Road and elsewhere on the island. Go to a designated area for disposing your waste. It’s free! If you can’t do it for pride in the Big Island, then do it because you don’t want to be slapped with a heavy fine. Thanks for listening.
Catherine Sagan
Kealakekua Bay
Serious road issues
There are serious roadway safety issues on Highway 11 between Kuakini Highway/Queen Kaahumanu Highway extension intersection and Hawaii Ocean View Estates. First and foremost, the asphalt pavement is in dire need of being resurfaced for most of this highway. Both the HDOT and Hawaii County are responsible for maintenance, which they’ve done a poor job over the years.
The poor condition of the pavement pales in comparison to a much larger issue, though. There is serious roadway design deficiencies on the Highway 11 between Captain Cook and Hawaiian Ocean View Estates. These design deficiencies are amplified by a serious speeding issue that has resulted in many car accidents and fatalities.
I believe HDOT, and to a lesser degree Hawaii County, need to take action to improve Highway 11. Firstly, both departments need to evaluate the condition of the asphalt pavement, and formulate a multi-year plan to resurface this highway. The HDOT also should evaluate what safety improvements are possible between Captain Cook and Hawaii Ocean View Estates.
There are a lot of sharp turns in between Hookena and Milolii, a distance of 15 miles, that will require the reconstruction of this segment of Highway 11. These safety improvements should include expanded shoulder pull off areas. This will aid the police in enforcing the speed limit, especially since there is a lot of people who drive like they’re on the Indy 500.
There is an underlying issue to the chronic speeding though. These scofflaws are stuck in traffic between Henry Street and Kamehameha III Road, so they speed to get home quicker. This why these safety improvements won’t be complete unless the widening of Queen Kaahumanu Highway Extension/Kuakini Highway proceeds.
These safety improvements won’t come cheap. This is why the Legislature needs to allocate enough funding to the HDOT, so they can maintain their existing inventory of roads and add capacity.
Aaron Stene
Kailua-Kona